Compression relieving starting device for internal-combustion engines



g- 11, 1953 J SLONNEGER 2,648,321

C. COMPRESSION RELIEVING STARTING DEVICE FOR INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINES Filed Dec. 15, 1947 John C S/onneger Patented Aug. 11, 1953 COMPRESSION RELIEVING STARTING DE- VICE FQR INTERNAL-COBQBUSTION EN- GENES John C. Slonneger, Dallas, Tern, assignor to The Continental Supply Company, corporation of Delaware Dallas, Team, a

Application December 13, 1947, Serial No. 791,484

Claims.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in compression relieving starting devices for internal combustion engines.

It is one object of this invention to provide an improved structure for opening the intake valve or valves of an internal combustion engine so as to initially relieve compression during the starting operations of the engine and permit the starting revolutions of the engine to reach sufficient frequency as to store energy of momentum in the flywheel suficient to overcome the work of compression in the cylinder and to assure a relatively certain starting of the engine.

A particular object of the invention is to provide an improved compression relieving m ans for the starting of internal combustion engines in which the intake valve actuating rod is employed to open the intake valve or valves of the engine so as to permit ready starting thereof.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide an intake valve push rod for internal combustion engines with means carried by said rod for engagement by compression relieving means, the means carried by the push rod functioning during normal operation of the engine to drive a fuel pump for said engine.

A construction designed to carry out the invention will be hereinafter described together with other features of the invention.

The invention will be more readily understood from a reading of the following specification and by reference to the accompanying drawing, wherein an example of the invention is shown, and wherein:

Fig. l is a longitudinal view, partly in elevation and partly in section, of a typical internal combustion engine structure and illustrating the application of this invention to the intake valve push rod of such engine,

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view in elevation of the operating handle and plate for the compression relieving device,

Fig. 3 is a vertical, cross sectional View taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2,

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary view illustrating a portion of the intake valve push rod and the means for actuating the same to re lieve compression, and

Fig. 5 is a view in elevation of the rearward side of the plate and pwh rod.

In the drawing, the numeral it designates the cylinder jacket of an ordinary internal combustion engine having a cylinder liner it carried within the jacket iii and the usual piston i2 positioned within the cylinder. The piston is linked by the ordinary connecting rod I3 to a crankshaft (not shown), with illustrated provision being made whereby the crankshaft may drive a suitable mechanism for reciprocating the ordinary type of valve push rod M. The usual flywheel (not shown) is carried by the crankshaft. The push rod M operates valve rocker arm l5 so as to open and close the intake valve positioned in the head is of the cylinder. It will be noted that the push rod It extends through the annular space it between the cylinder and the jacket of the engine. A similar push rod (not shown) may be provided for the actuation of the exhaust valve of the engine.

In the normal course of operation of the engine, the rod it is alternately reciprocated so as to open and close the intake valve at proper intervals and permit normal functioning of the engine. While this invention may be applied to multicylinder engines with equal facility, it is particularly adaptable to single cylinder, heavy-duty, stationary engines having usually one or two cylinders and adapted to be started b hand cranking. It is often quite difficult to turn the crankshaft of the engine over by hand to effect starting of the engine, and even more difficult to obtain a sufficient speed of revolution of the crankshaft to assure a relatively certain start of engine.

A considerable portion of the labor required to turn the engine crankshaft over is expended in compressing the air or fluids within the cylinder I I. It has been found that this compression can be avoided by opening the intake valve and holding it open until such time as the speed of revolution of the cranskshaft, which is being cranked by hand, has reached a value or magni tude sufficient to make the starting of the engine substantially certain. At this time, the intake valve may be released so as to operate in its normal fashion and permit the engine to commence firing.

From a practical standpoint this is important. After suiiicient energy has been stored in the flywheel to overcome compression and the compression release has been disengaged, it requires very little energy to continue the cranking of the engine if it fails to start; for the re-expansion of the compressed air in the combustion chamber returns nearly all of the work of compression (friction loss) to energy in the flywheel and thus the energy required to maintain cranking speed is only friction loss which is quite small. Without compression release it would be physically impossible for the average man to exert sufiicient force to overcome compression in an engine having cubic inch displacement per cylinder.

In the present invention, this desirable object and purpose is accomplished by causing the push rod i l to move to the left, as viewed in Fig. l, and thereby open and hold open the intake valve during the initial cranking operation. For this purpose, a spool i8 is suitably secured to the rod M at an intermediate point thereof, and is adapted to be engaged by an eccentrically mounted actuating spool or cam l9. An opening 20 is cut in the jacket IE! adjacent the position of the spool I 8 and is covered by a plate 2| affixed to the jacket by suitable bolts 22. The plate 2! has a transverse opening 23 near its right hand end which receives a suitable shaft 24. If desired, a bearing bushing 25 may be pressed into the opening 23, and the shaft 24 positioned Within the bore of said bushing. A suitable elongate handle 26 is secured to the outer end of the shaft 24 which projects beyond the outer face of the plate 2|, while the actuating spool or cam 19 is secured to the inner end of the shaft 24 which projects inwardly from the plate into the annular space between the jacket l and the cylinder liner ll. As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the shaft 24 projects in a horizontal plane below the horizontal plane of the push rod 14 so that the spool 18 is caused to underlie said rod.

The actuating spool carries a longitudinally extending opening 27 which is positioned eccentrically or off center with respect to the axis of said spool and receives the inner end of the shaft 24. Thus, upon rotation of the shaft by the handle 26, the spool I9 is caused to move eccentrically about said shaft.

The spool 19 is in the arm of an elongate cylinder having an annular, semi-circular groove 28 encircling its inwardly. projecting end. The push rod I4 is received within groove 28 as shown in Figs. 3 and 4.

The actuating spool extends transversely in respect to the rod l4 and is positioned adjacent the right hand end of the spool 13 carried by said rod. In the lowered position of the handle 20, the actuating spool is in its retracted or right hand position so as not to engage the spool 18. However, as the handle 26 is rotated in a counterclockwise direction through slightly more than 180 degrees, the actuating spool is caused to move in an arc to the left by reason of its eccentric mounting so that it engages the right hand end of the spool 18 and forces the latter to the left along with the rod 14. Manifestly, this action causes the valve rod to open the intake valve and relieve compression within the cylinder H. For the purpose of holding the handle 26 in its upper position, a pin 29 projects outwardly from the plate 2| so as to engage and support the handle 25 when it has been swung through slightly more than 180 degrees, as illustrated in Fig. 2. After a sufficient cranking speed has been obtained, the handle 25 may then be swung to the right in a clockwise direction so that the actuating spool is moved out of engagement with the spool 18, and the push rod I4 is allowed to resume its normal reciprocating action impressed thereon by means of the mechanism carried by the crankshaft, and the engine is allowed to start in a normal fashion.

It is very desirable to release the compression by opening the intake valve rather than the exhaust valve. Releasing the compression by holding the exhaust open heretofore has been the common practice in this art. If the exhaust is held open while cranking, the initial charge of combustible mixture is diluted by the air in the cylinder previously drawn in through the opened exhaust and thus causes starting failure on the first compression after disengaging the compression release. Whereas, if the intake is held open, a combustible mixture is pumped through the cylinder until the compression release is disengaged so that a combustible mixture exists within the cylinder when the compression release is disengaged and thus permits the engine to fire on the very first time through compression.

A fuel pump 30 is carried upon the left hand side of the plate 2| and has ites actuating lever 31 projecting inwardly through said plate so as to be engaged by the left hand end of the spool 18. In this manner, the actuating lever 31 is caused to operate by being intermittently engaged by the left-hand end of the spool 18 as the valve rod l4 reciprocates during normal operation of the engine. Employing this structure, the spool 18 is utilized both for the purpose of compression relieving and for operation of the fuel pump.

The foregoing description of the invention is explanatory thereof and various changes in the size, shape and materials, as well as in the details of the illustrated construction may be made, within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. An engine including, a cylinder jacket, a cylinder within and spaced from the jacket, an intake valve, a push rod for the valve extending between the cylinder and the jacket, a shaft extending through the jacket, a handle on the outer end of the shaft, a cam eccentrically mounted on the inner end of the shaft, and means carried by the push rod adapted to be engaged by the cam to move the rod and its valve to an open position.

2. An engine including, a cylinder jacket, a cylinder within and spaced from the jacket, a valve, a push rod for the valve extending between the cylinder and the jacket, a shaft extending through the jacket, a handle on the outer end of the shaft, a cam eccentrically mounted on the inner end of the shaft, spool carried by the push rod adapted to be engaged by the cam to move the rod and its valve to an open position.

3. An engine as set forth in claim 2 wherein one end of the spool is adapted to be engaged by the cam, and a fuel pump having its actuating member engaged by the opposite end of the spool whereby the reciprocation of the push rod actuates the fuel pump.

4. An engine as set forth in claim 3 wherein the shaft and fuel pump are carried by a plate removably secured to the cylinder jacket.

5. An engine as set forth in claim 3 wherein the shaft is carried by a plate removably secured to the cylinder jacket, and a stop projecting from the plate for supporting the handle in a valve-opening position.

JOHN C. SLONNEGER.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 774,554 Bougault Nov. 8, 1904 963,225 Hesselman July 5, 1910 1,245,724 Jacobs et al Nov. 6, 1917 1,254,780 Davison Jan. 29, 1918 1,547,130 Robinson July 21, 1925 2,086,609 Edwards July 13, 1937 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 8,124 Great Britain of 1904 19,959 Great Britain of 1907 455,832 Germany of 1928 376,490 Great Britain of 1932 443,780 Great Britain of 1936 

